SUDDEN VALLEY - The concrete flooring is in. So are the electrical wiring and the plumbing. Next up is the dry walling, as the effort to build a library for the south Lake Whatcom area continues at a clip.

With the work proceeding at such a pace, supporters hope to be able to finish turning a barn into a new library about six months earlier than expected, according to Bob Cooper, president of Friends of the Sudden Valley Library.

"We think there's a real chance that we may be able to complete it by the end of this year. That depends on funding," Cooper said.

The Friends' effort includes raising $300,000 for the project, and a little over $200,000 has been raised.

Cooper said a "fairly aggressive" plan will help raise the remaining dollars, including a series of four jazz concerts, bingo games four to six times a month and a fundraising dinner.

The nonprofit group is driving the project, saying the area has outgrown the limited services provided twice a week by the bookmobile from the Whatcom County Library System.

"The one thing that is spectacular about this whole project has been the fantastic response we've had from volunteers in both raising money and doing the remodeling work," Cooper said.

"We have a unique group of people that has sort of come out of the woodwork when we needed them, and has really contributed," he added.

When it opens as the South Whatcom Public Library at Sudden Valley, the roughly 6,500-square-foot space will replace the bookmobile.

The project is a collaboration by the Friends, Whatcom County Library System and the Sudden Valley Community Association. The library system will provide library materials, computers, furnishings and staff for the branch upon the renovation's completion.

TO HELP

Go online to suddenvalleylibrary.org to learn more about the project to build a new library in Sudden Valley, upcoming fundraising events and how to otherwise contribute to the effort.

Reach Kie Relyea at 360-715-2234 or kie.relyea@bellinghamherald.com.